Massive Russian Investment in Pakistan

Russia has come out in a big way and will be investing billions of Dollars. As the Russian relations with Bharat fray, the situation arising in South Asia is the opposite of what existed during the Cold War. Pakistan was a US ally and Bharat a Soviet client state. Today US Pakistani relations are at a nadir, and they are not improving. Russia and Pakistan have both decided to build their own links. A reset of relations will be paying dividends to both countries.

Russian state-owned mining and metallurgical facility construction company Tyazhpromexport will be modernizing the Pakistan Steel Mills near Karachi.

Russia’s largest power trader Inter RAO UES will be building power plants in Pakistan.

Russia will be joining the CASA-1000 project, which will bring electricity from Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan

Moscow also supports the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project to transport natural gas from Central Asian states to Pakistan and India.

Moscow also supported Pakistan’s quest to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The SCO set up a mechanism to allow new members to join the organization. Iran was turned down, and Bharat cannot join becuase of the Chinese veto. The Pakistani Prime Minister and President recently visited the Central Asian Republics (CARs). All supported Pakistan’s desire to join the SCO and make the ECO more potent. There has been discussion of building road and rail links from Fergana, and Dushambe to Gwader and Karachi. President Zardari offered Moscow access to the “Southern Seas”.